Channeling Judy
Renee Zellweger plays Judy Garland in new film.
Renee Zellweger knows what it’s like to be a public target. At 50, she’s lived half her life in the spotlight, weathering tabloid stories about her weight, plastic surgery and high-profile relationships (Jim Carrey, Kenny Chesney).
So when it came to playing Judy Garland
— whose struggle with substance abuse, financial troubles and custody battles were all grist for the mill — little surprised the actress. Not even learning that in the last years of Garland’s life, British audiences literally pelted her with bread rolls when they were displeased with her performance.
“It wasn’t shocking because I’ve never known any different,” Zellweger said. “It might have been a little less direct then than today, where you will be unapologetically asked about the nature or health of your personal, intimate relationships and the private choices you make.”
In Rupert Goold’s “Judy,” which opens Sept. 27, Zellweger plays Garland in the final months of her life. It’s 1968 and the “Wizard of Oz” star at 46 is no longer America’s sweetheart. Millions of dollars in debt, she’s in London, the only place she can find a paying gig. Away from her children, she’s drinking heavily and popping the pills.
In writing the screenplay, Tom Edge did not reach out to the Luft children or Garland’s older daughter, Liza Minnelli, who recently said, “I do not approve nor sanction the upcoming film about Judy Garland in any way.” Lorna Luft had already written a memoir, 1998’s “Me and My Shadows,” so he felt that “a little distance” from the children would prove useful in remaining neutral.
Zellweger, however, said she felt torn about speaking to Garland’s kids.
“I wanted to reach out not to ask questions, except to maybe ask what they would like or hope to see,” she said.
The actress tried to connect with Minnelli through a mutual friend but wasn’t successful. Luft was diagnosed with a brain tumor just as filming began. “That was a time for her and her family, not for a stranger to approach her about things that ultimately don’t matter, right?” Zellweger said. Instead, she dug into publicly available material.
“Judy” director Goold said he liked the idea of Zellweger as Garland because the star so often has been “presented almost as a gargoyle.”
He hoped Zellweger could channel Garland’s warmer side.
— Los Angeles Times